Fire fighters are provided with self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), which includes an air cylinder that is strapped to the fire fighter's back when the fire fighter enters a burning or hazardous area. The SCBA is normally stored in the fire truck and, in some cases, the truck is provided with a post, column, or bracket and several SCBA are clamped to the post. With this arrangement, the fire fighter at the scene of the fire, must then unclamp the cylinder, remove the SCBA from this mounting device and then strap the SCBA to his body. This procedure can require a number of seconds which can be critical when dealing with the fire. In other cases, the backs of the seats in the fire truck are manufactured formed with elongated central cavities and the air cylinders of the SCBA are clamped, or otherwise secured in the cavities for storage.
The recent trend has been for the fire fighter to strap the SCBA to his body while the fire fighter is seated on the seat in the fire truck, with the SCBA stored in the cavity in the seat back. With this arrangement, precious seconds can be saved, due to the fact that the fire fighter does not have to remove the SCBA and strap the SCBA to his body at the scene of the fire.
Recently, the SCBA cylinders have been made from lightweight composite material and as a result of the weight reduction, the cylinders are constructed with a larger volume or size. Because of this, it has been found that when the fire fighter rises from the seat, with the SCBA strapped to his back, the top of the cylinder can catch on the head pad of the seat. By code or regulation, the seat must include a head pad to support the neck and head of the occupant, and the head pad must be located a specified distance above the seat base. Thus, the presence of the head pad can prevent the fire fighter from rising from the seat in the normal manner and the fire fighter must exert a conscious and somewhat awkward effort to move forwardly on the seat before rising.
In the past, the SCBA tank has typically been stored in the cavity in the seat by engaging the tank with a pair of C-shaped metal clips. The open end of each clip is bordered by a pair of flexible lips, and as the tank is pushed inwardly, the lips flex outwardly to enable the tank to be received within the clips. The lips then spring back to hold the tank in position.
The use of the metal C-shaped clips has certain disadvantages. For example, the clips are normally designed for a given tank diameter and thus will not accommodate tanks which have a significantly different diameter.
Further, the metal clips cause wear to the tank as the tank is inserted and withdrawn from the clips, and as the clips are metal, vibrational noise results as the fire truck travels to an emergency site. As a further disadvantage, metal clips do not positively lock the tank to the seat and if the fire truck should stop suddenly the tank could fly forwardly from the clips and result in a potential danger to personnel in the truck.